Do THIS to Handle Chaos
17:54 Share

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to The Daily Stoic early and ad-free right now. Just join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Therapy is great. It's important. It can make your life a lot better. So why don't more people do it? Why don't we do it as often as we should? It's because a lot of therapists are out of network. It takes time to drive across town. It's uncomfortable. So we make excuses all

And that's where today's sponsor comes in. Talkspace is an affordable option and in network with most insurance providers. In fact, most insured members have a $0 copay. Talkspace is the leading virtual therapy provider, making getting the help you need accessible, easy, and affordable. Talkspace is the leading virtual therapy provider, making getting the help you need accessible, easy, and affordable.

You sign up online, you get paired with a licensed provider in less than 48 hours most times, and you can switch providers at no extra cost. And they've got specialists in basically every niche or problem or personality type you could imagine. And as a listener of this podcast, you'll get 80 bucks off your first month with Talkspace. When you go to Talkspace.com slash stoic and enter promo code SPACE80.

To match with a licensed therapist today, go to Talkspace.com slash DOIC and enter promo code SPACE80 to get 80 bucks off your first month and show your support for the show. That's Talkspace.com slash DOIC promo code SPACE80.

Welcome to the weekend edition of the Daily Stoic Podcast. On Sundays, we take a deeper dive into these ancient topics with excerpts from the Stoic texts, audiobooks that we like here or recommend here at Daily Stoic, and other long-form wisdom that you can chew on on this relaxing weekend. We hope this helps shape your understanding of this philosophy, and most importantly, that you're able to apply it to your actual life.

Thank you for listening. Hey, it's Ryan. Welcome to another Sunday episode of the Daily Stoic Podcast. Seneca has a thing about how, you know, what you want is not a large number of years at the end of your life, but you want something to show for it. And he said, this is a tragic thing that a lot of people have, but a number at the end. And one of the most incredible people that I have met in my life has both

A large number of years, as I said, but also just one of the most unreal life stories that I have ever encountered. And I am enthralled by it. And I've been asking him questions about it since I met him about a decade ago. And so about a year and a half ago, his son called me and said, hey, my dad's getting up there in years. You know, I know you guys go way back.

do you think anyone would be interested in doing a book about or for my dad? And I was like, Mark, this son's name is Mark. I was like, Mark, I am pretty sure someone would be interested. And I called my publisher. And like a week later, George had a book deal. And it's sort of the, you know, the cherry on top of an incredible life. This is a man who, when George was born, the life expectancy for a black man was like,

34 or 35 years old. He has doubled that and more.

And he's still here. And it's a journey that includes bringing Jordan to Nike and driving around Wilt Chamberlain when he was in college. And then it happens to include being on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington and walking home with the I Have a Dream speech. He's someone I try to talk to every couple of days, someone who in the course of interviewing him to help get his thoughts down for the book, I was just pinching myself. I am...

So, so lucky. That has culminated in this book that George is putting out. It's called What You're Made For, and it's lessons from his incredible life. It's not a memoir so much as it is a collection of lessons from his story. And I was very lucky and felt very fortunate. And as I said, pinched myself every day that I got to sort of download this and help convert it into prose for him.

And we've got some signed copies of it in the painting porch. George signed them. I signed them. It's a limited run of about 500. Not many of them are left. So you can grab those. I'll link to those in the show notes. And today I wanted to bring you a chapter from the audio book of What You're Made For. And it's a very stoic idea. It's about, George has this philosophy about how you create order from chaos. So that's sort of our job, to bring order to the messiness and disorder of life

And there's a bunch of stoic reminders in it. I asked him and the publisher if we could throw that together, and they said, of course. Basically, he's saying that one of the things we're made for is to create order from chaos, and that's what this chapter is about. And I do hope you grab one of the signed copies before they run out, or grab the audiobook wherever audiobooks are sold. To create order from chaos, when you see a successful individual, a champion, a winner,

you can be very sure that you are looking at an individual who pays great attention to the perfection of minor details. Coach John Wooden. At 62, I was tapped to run the second largest division in a Fortune 500 company, Nike, despite having no prior corporate experience. Initially, I turned the job down three or four times, convinced I didn't have the necessary skills or knowledge. For the first time in my life,

I truly doubted my own abilities. I confessed my doubts to the executive who offered me the job, Adam Helfand, saying, "Look, I think you got the wrong guy. I don't think I can do this. I don't think I have the skill set for it. And I don't want to get too deep into this thing and fail and make you look bad." Adam refused to let me back out.

You're not getting out of the job, he said. You're staying in the job. Here's what I want you to do. When you leave the office every day, leave a yellow pad in the middle of the desk. And when you come in the morning, write down the three most important things you got to get done that day in that order. That day, do not do anything else but the first thing on the pad. And if you get the first one, then you go to the second one.

That will put structure to your day, and it'll give you a sense of purpose. Then he asked me a question that put it all in perspective. How many people do you think get the most important thing they have to do that day done every day? I thought about it for a moment. Probably very few, I admitted. Okay, Adam said. So every day, put your notes on the pages and save them. And at the end of every month, you bring them in, and I'm going to go over them with you.

That simple system ended up working wonders. It kept me focused on what mattered most and gave me a clear sense of accomplishment at the end of each day. Suddenly, this daunting new role began to feel manageable. The structure Adam provided aligned with my comfort zone, enabling me to tackle tasks effectively. With that framework and a renewed sense of purpose, I felt capable of handling anything.

This experience reinforced a belief that had guided me throughout my life and career. One of our fundamental purposes as human beings is to create order and structure from the chaos of existence. The world we live in is fundamentally chaotic and unpredictable. The path forward is rarely clear or straightforward. There are always obstacles to overcome, setbacks to weather, and unexpected detours to navigate.

It can be disorienting and daunting, but in that chaos lies opportunity, the chance to forge our own way, to create meaning and purpose where none exists. This idea of creating order from chaos is not new. In fact, it's been a fundamental aspect of human thought for thousands of years. I remember coming across a fascinating concept from an ancient Egyptian culture during one of my deep dives into world mythology.

a subject I'd grown increasingly interested in as I sought to understand different cultural perspectives on life's big questions. The Egyptians had a concept known as Ma'at, which represented order, balance, harmony, justice, and truth. Ma'at was personified as a goddess

but was also understood as a cosmic force that maintained the universe against the ever-present threat of chaos and disorder known as ISFET. Look, when you have a small business, you don't have just someone who handles all your hiring for you, right? You got to do it yourself, and it takes time. It feels like it can cost a lot of money.

And if you don't find the right person, if you don't get access to the right candidates, you're not even aware of how much your business is missing out on. Finding the right people for the Daily Stoic team has always been a struggle. And then we started using LinkedIn Jobs. That's where we found our video editor and our podcast editor and my assistant,

Most of the people who work for Daily Stoic at this point we found through LinkedIn jobs. Posting is super easy and they even have awesome new AI tools to help you write the job description and get your job in front of people with deep candidate insights. You can post your job for free or pay to promote it.

That's why 72% of small businesses say that using LinkedIn has helped them find the right quality candidates. Something like two and a half million small businesses are using LinkedIn for hiring today. Post your job for free at linkedin.com. That's linkedin.com to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. One of the most powerful stories in Egyptian lore is that of Horus and Set, a tale that vividly illustrates this eternal battle between order and chaos.

Osiris, the wise and just ruler of Egypt, embodied Ma'at, the divine order that kept the world in balance. Under his reign, Egypt flourished. But this harmony was shattered when his brother Set, consumed by jealousy, murdered Osiris and seized the throne. Under the rule of Set, the god of chaos and disorder, Egypt was plunged into turmoil.

The land turned barren and people suffered as the balance of Ma'at was disrupted. Osiris's son Horus was destined to reclaim his father's throne and restore order to Egypt, ensuring that chaos would not prevail, guided by his divine heritage. As Horus grew, he understood that his destiny was to challenge Set and bring balance back to the world.

The battle between Horus and Set was not just a physical struggle, but a cosmic conflict between Maat and Isfet. Set fought with unpredictable fury, while Horus relied on strategy and discipline. Understanding that restoring Maat required more than brute force, Horus sought to outmaneuver his opponent. The battle tested Horus repeatedly. He faced setbacks, but always rose with renewed determination.

Through perseverance and unwavering focus on his purpose, Horus gradually gained the upper hand. Finally, he emerged victorious. With Set defeated, Maat was restored, and peace returned to Egypt. This myth serves as a powerful metaphor for our own struggles against chaos. We each face our own Set, the forces of disorder in our lives.

Like Horus, we often find ourselves confronted by chaos that threatens to overwhelm us. We have to fight to impose order on chaos, to create structure and meaning from disorder. In our own lives, Set might take the form of unexpected setbacks, overwhelming responsibilities, or the sheer complexity of the modern world. Our challenge, like that of Horus, is to remain focused on our greater purpose.

to use our intelligence and determination to overcome these forces of chaos. The story of Horus and Set teaches us that creating order is not a one-time event, but an ongoing process. It requires vigilance, strategy, and the unwavering commitment to maintain balance in the face of constant challenges. Just as Horus had to continually fight to maintain Ma'at,

we too must consistently work to create and maintain order in our lives. As we look at examples of how this principle plays out in the modern world, we can see echoes of Horace's struggle and triumph. I saw this principle powerfully at work in my friendship with Bob Knight. Bob was famous for his meticulous planning and attention to detail.

He'd carry around a stack of index cards in his pocket, each one filled with notes and reminders, practice plans, drills, points of emphasis, agendas for staff meetings. Even when Bob seemed to be acting impulsively or emotionally, it was all part of a carefully considered approach. There was a method to his madness, an order underlying his chaos. That lesson stuck with me in my own coaching career.

I sought to provide structure and purpose for my players that extended beyond the X's and O's of basketball. I developed my own system for creating order and imparting wisdom. Before each practice, I would gather the team in a circle and spend five minutes sharing a story or life lesson. These weren't about sports, they were about life. I might share an anecdote about perseverance, discuss the importance of integrity,

or explore concepts like empathy and leadership. After practice, I handed out articles for the players to read. These weren't sports articles either. They might be about current events, profiles of successful people from various fields, or pieces on personal development. The goal was to broaden their horizons, to help them see life more holistically beyond the basketball court.

This structured approach to mentorship allowed me to impart wisdom and values even amid the unpredictable nature of a basketball season. I wanted to create an awareness in their minds of other things in life beyond sports, which tends to dominate the lives of college athletes. Years later, one of my former players told me he had saved every handout in two boxes in his garage. Coach,

You know all those handouts that you gave out at the end of practice, he said. I've got every one of them. It made me feel incredibly good to know that these articles had made such an impact that the players had taken them more seriously than I'd realized at the time. This innate human drive to create order out of chaos may be more than just a metaphor. It may be hardwired into our very biology. In her book, Naming Nature,

Carol Kasich-Yoon describes a fascinating case that illustrates this point. A British patient known as JBR, after suffering brain swelling from herpes, lost the ability to categorize the natural world. He couldn't distinguish between a cat and a carrot or a toadstool and a toad. Interestingly, his understanding of nonliving objects remained intact. This case and others like it

suggests that we possess a built-in neurological mechanism for imposing order on the natural world, one that's crucial to our ability to make sense of our environment. The reality is that the world we live in is fundamentally chaotic and unpredictable. The path forward is rarely clear or straightforward. There are always obstacles to overcome, setbacks to weather, and unexpected detours to navigate.

It can be disorienting and daunting. But in that chaos lies opportunity, the chance to forge our own way, to create meaning and purpose where none exists. By imposing structure and order on the disorder around us, we can begin to chart a course through the unknown. We can break down big amorphous goals into tangible achievable steps. We can cut through the clutter and noise to focus on what really matters.

This, I believe, is one of the highest callings of the human spirit: to be a force for order in a chaotic world, to create structures that allow us and others to thrive and grow. It's not an easy task by any means. It requires vision and discipline, resilience and adaptability. It means being willing to take risks, to step outside our comfort zones, to bet on ourselves even when the odds seem long. But the rewards are immeasurable.

When we embrace the challenge of creating order from chaos, we tap into a wellspring of meaning and purpose that can sustain us through life's trials. We become architects of our own destinies, builders of something greater than ourselves. As you contemplate your own path and purpose, don't fear the chaos and uncertainty that inevitably lie ahead. Embrace them as opportunities to impose your own structure and meaning

Have faith in your ability to create order from disorder, to find your way through the wilderness of possibility. Because that is what we are made for, to be builders and creators, to shape the raw material of our lives into something beautiful and meaningful, to create order in chaos. It is a challenge worthy of the best that lies within us.

Thanks so much for listening. If you could rate this podcast and leave a review on iTunes, that would mean so much to us and it would really help the show. We appreciate it. I'll see you next episode. If you like The Daily Stoic and thanks for listening, you can listen early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music.

And before you go, would you tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey on wondery.com slash survey. When boxer Muhammad Ali refused to fight in the Vietnam War, citing his faith as a member of the Nation of Islam, his decision sparked a firestorm and cost him his heavyweight title.

But Ali refused to back down, setting the stage for one of the most high-profile legal battles of the 1960s. Hi, I'm Lindsey Graham, host of Wondery's show American Scandal. We bring to life some of the biggest controversies in U.S. history. Presidential lies, environmental disasters,

corporate fraud. In our latest series, as America wrestles with both civil rights and the ongoing war in Vietnam, Muhammad Ali fights a different kind of battle in courtrooms and the court of public opinion, determined to stand by his principles no matter the cost. Follow American Scandal on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. Experience all episodes ad-free and be the first to binge the newest season only on Wondery+.

You can join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial today.